WWE Sued By More Than 50 Wrestlers for Head Trauma

A total of 53 former wrestlers have sued World Wrestling Entertainment, claiming the WWE is responsible for head injuries suffered during matches that became more severe in later years.

The wrestlers say they have battled CTE, memory loss, dementia, headaches and dizziness.

According to the lawsuit:

WWE placed corporate gain over its wrestlers' health, safety, and financial security, choosing to leave the plaintiffs severely injured and with no recourse to treat their damaged minds and bodies....The WWE has done everything in its power to deny, conceal and deflect attention from acknowledging that this disease even exists in the community of retired wrestlers."

The plaintiffs, which include such high-profile stars as Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka, Joseph "Road Warrior Animal" Laurinaitis and Paul "Mr. Wonderful" Orndorff, are seeking an unspecified amount of money.

WWE chairman Vince McMahon is also named in the suit. He's accused of categorizing wrestlers as independent contractors instead of WWE employees in order to escape liability.

The WWE is trying to brush away the legal battle away. "This is another ridiculous attempt by the same attorney who has previously filed class action lawsuits against WWE, both of which have been dismissed," the company said. "A federal judge has already found that this lawyer made patently false allegations about WWE, and this is more of the same. We're confident this lawsuit will suffer the same fate as his prior attempts and be dismissed."

The WWE joins a small, but growing, fraternity of sports entities sued over head injuries. The NFL settles for $1 billion, while the case against the NHL is ongoing.